Should I go to school or start working at a vet hospital first?

Many vet clinics hire high school or college-aged students to help clean kennels and care for the animals in the clinic. Many vet clinics also offer boarding services, and hire school-aged kennel staff. Some clinics may hire college aged students as technician assistants, to help with restraint or exam room cleaning. For the purposes of your project, you could use any of these positions. If you're actively looking for such positions, I recommend creating a cover letter and resume, and reaching out to the vet clinics in your area to express your interest. Good luck! Hope this helps :-)

You should talk to your vet about volunteering in the clinic. Vet offices often need help, and you're at a perfect age to start learning about how to take care of animals. You should also work very hard in school, get all A's, and apply to a good college with a good science program. There are only about 30 vet schools in the US, so competition is very fierce. Be sure to study hard and get as much experience working with animals as you can.

Hi, this is Dr. Johnson. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! I recommend calling around to local Veterinarians and ask if they allow volunteers. Before I even went to college I volunteered at a local animal hospital. Then in college I worked part-time as a vet tech then full time. 12 years later I'm now a Vet at that same practice! Good luck!

Someone who wants to be a veterinarian can learn a lot by volunteering with or working for a veterinarian, an animal shelter, or zoo, but the only way to become a veterinarian is by attending college and veterinary school.

I started in high school. I needed good grades to get into a good university. I did not get into vet school my first try. I went and got a master's degree and worked for a few years before trying again. I did get into vet school on my second try. If it's a dream of yours to be a vet, go for it and keep trying! There are tons of vet who didn't get into school the first time around. Having extracurricular activities is good as well. Well rounded people at looked highly upon for vet school. Someone who studies all the time may not have the social skills needed to be a vet, and you do see in school that the ones with the best grades in vet school tend to have the most trouble relating to clients. Sports are a good idea. I was a swimmer; in fact, it paid for my university education with a scholarship. I hope this helps!

Hello! Sounds like you're interested in pursuing this career choice :-) I am happy to answer some questions for you, but we're limited in the length of our answer in the "free" forum here, so if you'd like a more thorough answer please request a consultation and I'm happy to go into more detail! There are many different types of veterinarians and different careers that can be pursued. I work in a busy small animal practice, and a typical day involves either surgery or seeing appointments. Either way, it's a busy job - lots of juggling scheduled appointments, "add-on" (urgent care style) appointments, drop off hospitalized animals, and phone calls, and LOTS of paperwork as everything needs to be thoroughly documented in the animal's medical record. What makes this job most interesting is the variety, as we see all conditions and never know what the day has in store! You might spend a morning suturing a laceration, managing an emergency, counseling an owner on training a new puppy, or talking through behavioral concerns. I initially decided to become a veterinarian when I was a small child due to my love of animals, then solidified the decision as an adult when I realized how much I enjoy the problem-solving aspect of medicine. The best moment of being a vet is when I am caring for a sick animal and I get to see the first tangible signs that it's feeling better. For example, when a sick animal who hasn't eaten in days suddenly shows enthusiasm about food. That's a good feeling! The worst moments are navigating the difficult decisions about juggling care and money concerns - vets all wish we could provide the best possible care for all of our patients, but unfortunately good care costs money, and this is a limitation that many owners have. If we could treat everyone for free we would! But it's just not possible to do so and remain in business. Good communication is absolutely essential to being a good vet. Ultimately the decisions about care need to be made by the owners, and they need to understand what you're recommending and why, as well as understand anything necessary regarding follow-up care. A common challenging situation is when we are booked with appointments, and then an emergency comes in that absolutely requires our immediate time and attention. Patients need to be triaged and emergencies need to take priority, but we also want to respect people who have appointment times and don't want to keep them waiting - so again this job requires a lot of juggling! The most important thing to focus on in high school is taking lots of advanced classes and doing what you can to excel. Particularly focus on math and science, but all aspects of education are important at the high school level. Get as much experience with animals as you can, as vet schools will want to know that you are aware of what you're getting into wiht vet school! Shadow a vet if you can, work in a boarding kennel, etc. Good luck! Again, if you want additional information you are absolutely welcome to request a consultation!

Hi, I am a vet and I'd be glad to answer your questions! The average a vet makes varies by area and clinics, and the type of animal you work with (i.e. large animal, small animal, equine), but the average starting salary can be around $70k. I've always wanted to be a veterinarian, even since I can remember. It's the only job I've wanted to do since I was a child. I work with small animals and horses. I attended Purdue University for my undergraduate degrees, but i went to Massey University in New Zealand for veterinary school. It's accredited by the American Veterinary Medical Association, and I got to move to the most beautiful country in the world :-) It took me a long time to get where I am, as I didn't get into vet school right away. I went and got a master's degree before going back to vet school. If you get into vet school right out of college, it will take at least eight years total (four in college and four in vet school) before you are a qualified vet. I'm not sure what you mean by any other achievements in this career, sorry. You need to be aware that being a vet isn't a 9-5 job. It's very long hours, there is a high amount of debt from vet school, and the pay relatively isn't great for the amount of debt. I do love working with animals, but sometimes working with owners carries its own difficulties. It's also hard to lose a patient, and seeing cases of animal abuse are especially difficult. You really have to have a passion for animals for this job, but also understand it's not easy. The road to get here is very hard and the job itself is very hard, but it can be rewarding. If you want a true idea of what it's like to be a vet, I would volunteer at a vet's clinic to get that experience. I hope this helps!